Setting aside justice and what's right, IMPEACHMENT is the best option for gop and trump
For Trump: the trump family will be lucky and should be happy just to stay out of jail. Self-pardon and pardons for corrupt purposes will be challenged. They should be WAY past trying to get out of this with a legacy and reputation that all but the 10% cultists would respect. Impeachment BEFORE Jan 20 may mean a pardon from Pence. A Pence pardon may soften calls for state indictments as well, and Trump can claim victimhood yet again. That may be the best they can hope for, aside from fleeing the country and giving up their assets here.
For the GOP, politically: at this point, they could choose to go further right, embrace Cruz and Hawley and try to hang onto the diminishing Trump cultists. But cult loyalty may not be transferable enough and the gop may continue to lose moderates, shrinking further. May even lose many more if Trump decides to burn down the gop and expose those who were with him and complicit in many, many shady deals and conversations. The GOP needs rehabilitation BAD. They need to show, however disingenuously, that they care about the US and governing. Voting to remove an unstable, unfit president might do that for many (not for me of course, after years of complicity and hypocrisy on their part). Acting like responsible adults might be hard for them, but they may have to do it. The GOP doesn't get any credit if trump resigns or if Pence/Cabinet invoke the 25th or if they allow Trump to stay in office perhaps with more unrest. An impeachment conviction may appear to resemble oversight...late but there.
Both Trump and GOP likely won't act in the nation's best interests if past performance is any guide, but they may see impeachment as being in their OWN interest and therefore it has a better chance this time.
= new reply since forum marked as read
Kick in to the DU tip jar?
This week we're running a special pop-up mini fund drive. From Monday through Friday we're going ad-free for all registered members, and we're asking you to kick in to the DU tip jar to support the site and keep us financially healthy.
As a bonus, making a contribution will allow you to leave kudos for another DU member, and at the end of the week we'll recognize the DUers who you think make this community great.